Metal Gear Solid 3: Codename: Foxhound
by OutlawZero2002
Summary: Solid Snake is reborn. Witness the fall of a hero and the rise of a villain. Restarted after three years in writing limbo.
1. Betrayal

Metal Gear Solid III: Codename: Foxhound  
  
Chapter I: Betrayal  
  
He made his entrance into the Council as the debate was most heated. It instantly quieted   
down as soon as he had entered the room. The three Judges sat at the highest platform. The   
man came up to them and kneeled before them.  
  
"Ocelot...we have awaited your appearance. Do you have the data?"   
  
The man rose up before the Judges, revealing the face of none other than Revolver Ocelot, a   
patch over his left eye and a cape covering his body. He smiled and pulled a small group of   
discs, encased in a silverish case. The room's eyes descended upon him, upon the case he held.   
  
The Judges rose up, one of them reaching for the case as Ocelot's hand extended it to them.   
The Judge's hand coursed the surface of the case and the entire room froze upon as his   
wrapped around the case and as he pulled it from Ocelot's hand. He smiled and the room   
entered a state of silent applause.  
  
"Thank you for your service, Comrade. The Patriot's are indebted to you."  
  
Ocelot turned around and walked away before the Judge finished his sentence. Before reaching   
the end of the room, Ocelot's turned around and simply said these words, a smile on his face   
and in a terribly different but familiar voice said these simple words:  
  
"The Patriot's are indebted to me...and you will pay for their mistakes."  
  
The gun hidden under his cape found his way into his hands as he fired, the bullet penetrating   
it's way through the invisible way of the fortress, and through the silence of the room as it hit   
the Judge perfectly in the head. The rest of the room sought to be frozen as he fell, the case   
dropped to the ground along with his lifeless body.   
  
By the time this had happened, Ocelot had already exited the fortress to a helicopter waiting   
outside. The entire room came to life as members stumbled over one another to help the   
Judge, who was already dead… someone then took notice of the numbers counting down on   
the case...  
  
The building burst into an inferno as Ocelot looked down from the helicopter.   
  
"This was the beginning, of the end for the Patriots and a new beginning for us."  
  
As he spoke, the pilot turned to him and smiled, the helmet flashing in the twilight of the   
blast... Frank Jaeger. 


	2. Discovery

Metal Gear Solid III: Codename: Foxhound  
  
Chapter II: Discovery  
  
…A man stood on a bridge, the city behind him flowing with energy as if to show the power of   
the people before him. The man expelled the smoke of a cigarette as everything before his eyes   
seemed to slow down…he knelled and pressed his finger to his ear…  
  
"This is Snake."  
  
"Snake, this is Black Shadow. We have reports that a building in the Capital had exploded."  
  
"No survivors?"  
  
"One."  
  
"What's his name?"  
  
"We don't know. He seems to have possessed a case of amnesia and the only name that he   
can remember is "Judge"."  
  
"Judge…have Otacon run a profile on this man."  
  
"Allright. Black Shadow, out."  
  
This man, above everything else, this man was known as Solid Snake…  
  
He rose up and began walking forward, past the traffic, past the people, his speed increasing   
with every step. Finally, he gracefully broke into a run, speeding the people behind him as he   
enabled his stealth and disappeared…  
  
A figure stood, watching the shadow of a man who just disappeared from view. That figures face   
was hidden, but the meaning of his actions was defined simply as he took a knee to the ground   
and connected C4 to the ground. As the moonlight fell on the bridge, many more were seen,   
littering the bridge, each one brining a meaning of death within itself. Now, the figure rose up   
and taking a cell-phone out of the pocket in his cape, made a call. Then, after a short   
conversation, he drew a remote from the other pocket…and pressed the detonator button…  
  
*I didn't except such a response to the first chapter so I decided to continue writing.   
Anyway…another cliffhanger, I guess. The next chapter will be up tomorrow so don't   
worry…Snake isn't about to die…yet. 


	3. Tragedy

Metal Gear Solid III: Codename: Foxhound  
  
Chapter III: Tragedy  
  
Note: This chapter depicts some scenes that may be too emotional or violent for some   
individuals…otherwise, you may read on.   
  
Snake slowed down as he crossed the bridge and headed toward the other end. Usually, he   
didn't use the cameo in just a sprint across the bridge, but this time, he felt the urge to do it.   
Snake never liked to hide from the world but now, he felt his muscles tense as he tried to put   
the puzzle of the Patriots and the explosion in the Capital together…then he felt   
something…something that was unmistakably…   
  
"Wait..."   
  
That was the breaking point…the noise…he knew it by heart…a beginning of a   
nightmare…the cries…they drove him on the edge of insanity those nights   
  
"No"   
  
He saw the man on the bridge. He felt the explosion before he heard it. The rumble in the   
ground…the screams of the wounded…the silence of the dead…a hallucination indulging his   
very soul into a realm that was lost to even those broken men…  
  
Then, he saw what he hoped wouldn't be there. A couple of feet before him, concealed by   
camoflauge, lay C4. His instincts took over…the bright explosion lit up the sky…  
  
Across the bridge, it went off in a show of lights, opening up hell to the earth…connecting the   
tragedy and life in a macabre way…the murder stood on the bridge smoking... He lined the   
C4 in such a way that bridge would not stand….It would fall quickly.   
  
Snake didn't even have a chance…caught in the explosion he had felt the heat but even as   
the pain was overwhelming, his heart ripped at the thought of the pain and suffering   
thousands will suffer…and their parents, their children…brothers, sisters, husbands,   
wives…people…it was driving him insane…he had to stop this…he had to stop this…  
  
He thrust his eyes open against the heat and saw a woman…running from the blast as it   
threw her forward in the air and engulfed her…another group of people jumping off the   
bridge…those who were still alive as they hit the water, looking up upon the sign of their   
deaths…the bridge coming down on they even as they tried to escape it…  
  
"No"   
  
Snake let the blast radius implode under his, and in his fall, opened his arms and dove down,   
towards the water…he hit the water…  
  
Every bone in his body seemed to break as he hit the water…he dove down and then,   
pushing forward, dove out and breathed fresh air, the bridge crashing down in a fiery inferno.   
Snake dove down again…allowing the water to carry him forward, toward the shore…he felt   
his blood dissolve into the water…everything before his eyes became a play of red and   
black…and he saw no more… 


	4. Resurrection

Metal Gear Solid III: Codename: Foxhound  
  
Chapter 4: Resurrection  
  
Life…death…what was it all to a lost man…searching above for answer in the lives that he has   
taken…he the only one left…left…asking questions that could never be answered…he was the   
one, the lost, the found, the simple creature in the complicated tapestry between the living and   
the dead…equally neutral to both sides…he was the One…the only…the legend…  
  
Today, a few hours after the building in the Capital exploded, at 8:14 P.M., a bridge in Southern   
Washington collapsed after a bombing from the alleged group responsible for the bombing in   
the Capital…rescue workers fear hundreds dead…the group, calling themselves Sons Of   
Liberty…a group responsible for the tanker accident 4 years ago…government cover-  
ups…Patriots…Snake, we are not tools of the government of the government or anyone   
else…fighting was the only thing…the only thing I was good at…but at least…I always fought   
for what I believed in…Snake…farewell…FOX!!!   
  
Tools of the government…we are…not tools of the government…we are people…fought for I   
believed in…where am I? Why can't I wake up?…I have to fight against…Sons Of   
Liberty…Solidus is dead…but the Patriots…are alive…they have to be…impossible…but…they   
have to be…ALIVE…THEY HAVE TO BE…ALIVE…WAKE UP, SNAKE!…SNAKE!  
  
…Snake took a breath of fresh air as he coughed out of the water and looked up seeing the   
bridge still a fiery wreck, a continued swirl of black and red…he realized that he had lost   
conscience a few minutes ago…and heard a familiar voice…Otacon…brought him back to the   
real world…he felt sick…and he couldn't feel his left arm…but he was alive…that was all that   
counted…but all those people…  
  
Snake tried to forget what he saw but he couldn't…those hellish images could never be   
forgotten but Snake tried not to think of them as he kicked off and floated to shore, using one   
arm to propel himself forward…in a few minutes, he was on shore…  
  
Briefly, he stood up then fell from exhaustion, pressing two fingers to his year while he lay on   
the sand, nearly conscious again.  
  
"Otacon?"  
  
"Snake?! Snake! You're alive!"  
  
"Doesn't feel like it. My left arm is broken but otherwise…Do you know who…"  
  
"Blew the bridge? We have no idea, but the media is pinning this to Sons Of Liberty…Snake, we   
will have you picked up immediately. Black Shadow is on the way."  
  
"How is that possible? They disbanded two years ago…"  
  
"No, Snake…there is a new group calling themselves Sons Of Liberty…they claim to be the   
followers of the Patriots…their leader…is Revolver Ocelot."  
  
Snake finally found the strength to rise up as he slowly arose in the darkness illuminated by the   
bridge's destruction.  
  
"Ocelot…Otacon, what have you found out about the survivor of the Capital explosion."  
  
"I know this is going to sound unbelievable, even impossible maybe…but the survivor calls   
himself…Sears, George Sears."  
  
"George Sears…Patriots…Ocelot…Otacon, run a file check on Alexander Ashford."  
  
"Alexander Ashford…searching now…Snake, is this man known as Shadow Viper?"  
  
"Yes, Otacon…the Patriots ARE alive…"  
  
"But that's impossible…"  
  
"Otacon, listen to me! The Patriots are alive…I know…they blew the bridge…but how could they   
have blown their own…"  
  
"Snake, what are you thinking?"  
  
"Find and pin Ashford's location…something doesn't fit here…and I am going to find out what."  
  
Author's Note: Many questions are left unanswered but will be answered soon enough…you will   
see. 


	5. Invasion Part I

Metal Gear Solid III: Codename: Foxhound  
  
Chapter 5: Invasion  
  
…Snake grinded his teeth as Otacon bandaged his arm…he looked around   
the Philanthropy headquarters, a small set of rooms in an   
unrecognizable building blending in sync of the commute of people of   
New York…they were all the same…and they were all in danger.  
  
Snake stood up, facing Black Shadow and Otacon as the pain subsided in   
his arm. Otacon sat down before a laptop and motioned Snake to come   
closer…the screen exploded with a flash of newspaper articles, numbers,   
words, data both dangerous and crucial to the people. The numbers and   
articles ran down the screen, as if providing a matrix…a way to find   
the Patriots…the matrix itself soon slowed down enough for Snake's eye   
vision to adjust, quickly reading the titles of the Articles…as he read   
on, the muscles of his face strengthened and he turned to Otacon.  
  
"So…"-he paused for a bit before continuing-"The world now knows of the   
Patriots…what information came up on Alexander Ashford?"  
  
  
Otacon touched a button on the laptop came up with a man's face that   
would have disgusted any normal person. Scars graced the face, one of   
the eyes made of glass, the glass painted as an 8-Ball, the man's   
second eye staring into emptiness. The mouth was nearly seen under the   
scars but it showed a smile…"how ironic", Snake thought as he looked at   
Ashford bio and then back to the face…Otacon enlarged the bio and ran   
it down the screen so it could be seen better…  
  
Name: Alexander Ashford  
Codename: Shadow Viper   
Age: Unknown (Rumored to be 65)  
Bio: The leader of a terrorist organization formed in South Africa   
during World War II, calling themselves The Liberators. Revolver Ocelot   
contacted him soon after the Shadow Moses incident. Viper is rumored to   
be involved with the Sons of Liberty and S3 (Solid Snake Simulation).   
It is known that Viper's family was killed in battle during the Gulf   
War and that his father was the first leader of the Liberators. Viper   
himself was wounded during the Gulf War when a Oil Tank exploded next   
to his platoon…horribly disfigured by the accident, Viper chose to take   
revenge on the United States…  
  
Snake finished reading and now turned from Otacon to Black Shadow…Michael Warren, a.k.a Black Shadow was still a young man of 23, but Snake respected him and thought of him as a fortunate teammate…Snake began to remember but then stopped as he spoke:  
  
"We know that Viper is with Sons of Liberty…and that Ocelot is their   
leader"-he paused again and looked back at the screen…Shadow spoke.  
  
"Otacon, did you say that the survivor called himself George   
Sears…Solidus Snake?!"  
  
Otacon clicked the mouse and the article came up, the face on the   
screen, in the hospital bed, unmistakably Solidus': there was no doubt   
about it…Solidus Snake had survived.  
Snake looked at the screen, a thousand thoughts clashing within his mind…one arising clearer than any other…  
  
"Warren…it seems as we will pay a visit to the hospital. Come on." 


	6. Invasion Part II

Metal Gear Solid III: Codename: Foxhound  
  
Chapter 5: Invasion (Pt. 2)  
  
Snake and Warren walked into the hospital, the nurse at the desk motioning them to the second floor as Snake provided ID-so notably mentioning his name as David Hayter. Arriving on the second floor, Snake was lead to a room labeled "313", Shadow not far behind, surveying the hospital. Snake pulled the door and walked in.  
  
The image of the man on the bed...a seemingly sick, broken man...was the spitting image of Solidus Snake. Snake took a step back in surprise, even though he had already seen the picture, it was still unusual to see Solidus in such a condition. Warren walked in and pulled up a chair as the man seemed to stare into an endless dimension, sitting on the bad...Snake took a step forward and came up, standing before the man...  
  
The, the simple expression on the man's face changed into a grin...a grin full of venom of deception...a dangerous grin. Snake spoke first.  
  
"Are you George Sears?"  
  
The man looked at Snake, that same grin on his face, his mouth twisting as he took in air, preparing to say something.  
  
"Sears...George Sears...yes...I am Sears."  
  
"What do you know about the Patriots?"  
  
Solidus suddenly grabbed for Snake's coat as Snake stepped away...taking another deep breath in, the man spoke the endless truth, the truth that flew threw Snake's mind during his submersion...  
  
"Today, a few hours after the building in the Capital exploded, at 8:14 P.M., a bridge in Southern Washington collapsed"-he put his hands in the air, as if to simulate an imaginary boundary- "after a bombing from the alleged group responsible for the bombing in the Capital...rescue workers fear hundreds dead...the group, calling themselves Sons Of Liberty...a group responsible for the tanker accident 4 years ago...government cover"  
  
Snake heard Warren's gasp of surprise and took a step forward toward the man...pulling out picture and giving it to him...  
  
"Do you know who this man is?"  
  
"Yes...yes...Revolver...revolver..."  
  
He now fell silent...Snake finished his phrase for him.  
  
"Revolver Ocelot"  
  
The man suddenly gasped as Snake mentioned the name...he reached forward and grabbed Warren forward, his other hand suddenly finding a scalpel in his bedcovers...Snake reacted instantly as the man brought the scalpel to Warren neck...Snake's weapon clicked, pointed at the man's head...he spoke, no longer in a hushed voice but in a quick, rushed, worried voice...  
  
"Listen to me carefully...Ocelot is not the leader of the Sons Of Liberty. He is responsible for the destruction of the building in the capital...the leader of the Sons Of Liberty is"  
  
Solidus gasped for air as the scalpel slipped from his hands...he let Warren go and continued gasping for air as Snake watched, not being able to do anything...  
His body went into seizures, the bed shaking as neither Snake nor Warren could do anything...he gasped again, his hands on his heart now...and let out a horrible scream...  
  
"FOOOOOOOXXXXXXXXXXDDDDDDIIEEEEEEEE!"  
  
Snake knew the hospital personnel had heard that...he pulled the door open as he pushed forward, knocking the incoming nurse to the ground...he heard a gun click and dropped to the ground as the sound of the shot escaped the weapon...he saw a security pointing a guard at him and aimed at his leg...he fired and the security guard went down...then he heard Warren gasp...saw him slide down a wall, a bloody spot in his lower abdomen.  
  
"$#@!"-Snake cursed as he pulled Shadow up and toward the door, as he heard the hospital personnel scream and guns click...the cavalry was here...but they weren't on the people's side...they were on the Patriot's side...he pushed the door open and felt the warm touch of a rifle as it clicked against his forehead...he stopped...the entire stairway and room was filled with heavily armed men all pointing M-16s at him...sweat dropped down his forehead...he slowly turned toward the man whose rifle was against his forehead...and let Warren drop to the ground as he put his hands up...and pulled the man's arm, breaking it before any of the other mercenaries had a chance to react and putting Warren's gun to the man's head... 


	7. Deceit Part I

Chapter VI: Deceit (Pt. I)  
  
Ocelot's men stood before him, their rifles clicking in unison as they moved forward slowly around him. Snake's mind threw out hundreds of different ideas at the rush of adrenaline that he received...one of them struck a chord of violence in him as he glanced over at Warren, the blood slowly flowing down his clothes, forming a terrible, hellish painting of the horror and pain that Shadow was experiencing as Snake fought for his survival. Snake's arm pulled toward Shadow as he began walking back through the open door, the man still an unmoving object, the fear of death hanging above him as the weapon squeezed powerfully into his temple...they...they fired...  
  
The bullets riddled the man's body as Snake pulled back, pulling Shadow in as he threw the man's body toward the mercenaries as he locked the door. The hospital personnel seemed to have deserted this floor and the hospital in general...Snake pulled forward into Solidus' room. He glanced into the man's dead eyes while in the middle of the room and froze for a slight second...then headed towards the window, locking the door as he sat down, securing Shadow against a chair...contacting Otacon.  
  
"Otacon here"  
  
"Otacon..."-Snake breathed before continuining, the entire event replaying in his mind...-"It was all a cover-up...they were toying with us all along...Solidus is dead and Ocelot's men are breaking through the door as we speak..."  
  
"Snake..."-there was a broken silence as Otacon shook himself bad together-"I'll be right there".  
  
There, at that moment, Snake heard Shadow's gasp.  
  
"SNAKE!"  
  
Then Snake heard it...he jumped, bringing himself and Shadow to the floor as both doors blew, splinters showering over the two men...Shadow gasped again as Snake rose, guarding Shadow as the soldiers rushed into the room...Snake fired, hitting the first two and then returned fire...Snake felt one wound, then another, he was being pushed back, the pain almost unbearable as he fired again and again, more soldiers dropping to the floor...lights played before his eyes...lights of red and blue, rainbows of people and objects...Snake could no longer see...only the rising crescendo of the M-16s could bring him back to the reality...he felt the stings all over his body...his breath slipped as he gasped and...his SOCOM clicked on empty as Snake found the pain unbearable and dropped, the remaining survivor rising up before him in his fading vision...he reached toward Shadow as if to shield him as one of the man came up to him...taking off his mask...Snake saw his face...it was impossible...that man...the man before...that man was Black Shadow...Snake vision lost even more focus as he heard a gun click and then...Snake gasped one last word...  
  
"Meryl"  
  
Solid Snake...  
Was dead. 


	8. Deceit Part II

Metal Gear Solid III: Codename: Foxhound  
  
Chapter VI: Deceit (Part II)  
  
"Meryl"  
  
HE awoke…straining to see into the space around him…his muscles contracted and allowed him to move for a slight second before the paralyzing reaction took over again. HE was compelled to arise…but he couldn't. His enterprise has been in vain…and now…HE strained to ask himself the ultimate question... "Who am I?"  
  
A man roamed above him, working quickly and smiling into his half-opened eyes…the man…HE remembered something about the man.  
  
"S----are----allright?"  
  
HE heard the parts of the sentence as his hearing began to return but then was lost again, as HE began to realize that trying to hear the man was ineffectual. Suddenly, HE felt the sudden urge to kill…he felt the smell…he heard the screams of the dead…he didn't know who he was but this man did…the idea formed itself in his mind…What…if…What if he wanted to…kill…me?...him…NO!  
  
HE felt his hand wrap around the man's throat as he arose, the strength returning to him as HE pulled the man up in the air, the lab coat quivering before him as the man gasped for breath…once again, HE asked himself…if it was too late for that man now…if he has met his final demise…or maybe it was too late for him?   
  
The grip loosened as HE threw the man into the instruments, the body crashing against, an unpleasant playing against his ears and a picture forming before his eyes as HE quickly pulled the clothes off the man, dressing quickly, without even questioning how HE had done the above…maybe it was just an instinct of natural order…HE didn't know.   
  
HE arose, the clothes too short for him but fitting enough as HE blindly searched his way, his eyes need being able to work together with his body as if he was infant…yes, HE thought, maybe I am an infant…HE exited through the doors, finding himself in the hallway…blindly searching forward, through the empty floor…HE questioned himself again…how did HE know this word?  
  
Finally, finding his way through the hallway, and down the stairs, HE appeared on the street…people walked by him even as he blindly bumped into them. HE, again, felt a child point and him and whisper something to his mother, who quickly hushed him and began to walk rapidly as they passed him.   
  
There…there…HE felt it…he heard it…he saw…HE was not something ordinary…he remember what the man said to him…S---, are ---- allright?...S?...S…n…a…k…e…am I…Snake…yes, I am…I am Snake…there.   
  
And there he was, in the street, people passing him by as his eyes focused and his ears found the joy of sound…there was Solid Snake… 


	9. Revelations

Metal Gear Solid III: Codename: Foxhound  
  
Chapter VII: Revelations  
  
The shaded building stood among the slums of a city that would otherwise be identified as New York. The moonlight played with the puddles among the streets as a single light illuminated the 5th floor of the building...inside the window, the apartment held a rather poor appearance, most of the furniture broken and a old television and VCR backed into the corner. However, the next room was rather a different touch from the outlook of the slums...a computer console stood upon a black table, the light of the console illuminating the room, as if beckoning the moonlight, the natural, to face the power of technology. Otherwise, the room was empty...if you were to include the man sitting at the console, then, the scenery took on an entire new play.   
  
The man seemed to be waiting for something...a call...as his cellphone range, he reached into his cape to get, the holsters of two guns being illuminated as the console's light dimmed a little. The voice inside the cellphone informed this man of the following:  
  
"Ocelot, your boy is right on schedule."  
  
"Very good...see if you can...provide him with some..." - Ocelot paused as a shadow played in the moonlight of the room...he reached for the weapon then stopped and continued.  
  
"Provide him with some challenges so to speak." - Ocelot chuckled as he noticed the shadow again...this time he didn't hesitate. He jumped back, the chair flying over the console as he fired twice, the shadow now taking on the shape of a man as...Ocelot landed, and pointed the handguns straight as where he had seen the man before...only, he wasn't there. He felt a rustle near him and didn't even have a chance to turn around as he felt the cold steel of the blade against his throat...he hesitated for a second, then spoke.  
  
" Mr. Ashford, I presume?"  
  
The shadow now disappeared for a slight second as the cold steel dispensed into the warm air...and landed in the middle of the room. The shadow was now a well illuminated shape of man...clothed in a cape which covered his metal suit, the face of the man enclosed by cloth except for one eye...the moon again played with the shadow and illuminated the man's face...the second eye could be seen for a second under the cloth...a fox, holding a knife painted on it...this man was Shadow Viper. The suit was a marvel of technology, perfectly fitting the man's tall, muscular body, as he stood at his full height of 5'9...even at 65, Viper illuminated total power and authority...however, Ocelot was could not be affected by it.  
  
"The 8-Ball was more fitting for you, Ashford." -He chuckled again as he looked upon the man, who himself did not utter a noise seemed to produce what seemed like a grimace in the light of the moon and the console. Viper spoke in a flowing, low voice.  
  
"The Sons Of Liberty...who are they?"  
  
Ocelot waited for a second to process the words and then answered, "The Sons Of Liberty are nothing more than a creation of the media...the Patriot's, on the other hand, is truly something different." Viper didn't seem satisfied and continued. "So...Solid Snake is still alive?"  
  
Ocelot now couldn't hold himself from laughing as he answered, "I wouldn't hope so...he is no longer the legend he used to be...more of...the result of the Les Infantes Terribles project...just like Liquid." He chuckled again then stopped in though, his hand automatically reaching for the Colt as he spun one his finger.  
  
"What is our next move then?" Viper asked as Ocelot stopped spinning the Colt, the gun fitting itself perfectly into his hand.   
  
"Our next move, Mr. Ashford, is to make our authority known...you will be informed of our plans as soon as they are put into state of being. As of now, however, take a rest..."  
  
Viper turned to leave but turned before the shadows as Ocelot spoke, his words full of acid and maliciousness.  
  
"Oh...and Mr. Ashford...don't look for Foxhound...they will come to you when time is right."  
  
...As Viper disappeared, Ocelot's voice changed a pitch as he spoke, in a voice that yet again could only recognized as one man's...  
  
"Snake...you are a fool...do not see that you meet the same fate as our brother...it's time to face your genes...or die by my hand." 


	10. Requiem I

Metal Gear Solid III: Codename: Foxhound  
  
Chapter IX: Requiem  
  
He had spent days wondering before he was approached…one day, while sitting in against a rain-soaked roadblock, he was approached by a seemingly wealthy man. He wore a brown trenchcoat, and sunglasses even as the darkness shrouded the city. The man, whose name he chose let remain unknown, asked to be called Echo and told Snake that he would contact him in a few days.   
  
The name Snake was no longer of real meaning to him, as he chose to have himself called David…he couldn't remember where he had heard this, but from the remains of his memory, it was either of two names: Jack or David. A few days later, Echo returned, handing David a newspaper and asking him to try and recall anything from the title on the cover page…"Philanthropy: Wanted Dead Or Alive". David, however, could only state the definition of the word Philanthropy. When Echo asked David if he could remember anything about his surroundings, David chose not to answer as he could no longer recall even the images flashing in his head at that precise moment…  
  
A man in a laboratory jacket…what was a laboratory jacket? Yet every night, as David drifted off to sleep in the cold dirt, waiting for Echo to return, he had seen a face staring into his eyes from an armored suit.   
  
This time, after David had finished surveying the paper, Echo took his hand and helped him up. Echo proceeded to take David to a store somewhere in the city, a place Echo called Man…Man…Manhattan. He clothed David in what, according to Echo, were the most expensive clothes this side of New York, as he called the city. After they had exited the shop, Echo turned to David.  
  
"Listen…I'm going to send you on a mission…I need you to kill a man."  
  
David didn't even think this over. Something told him he knew exactly how to do it.  
  
"I'll do it."  
  
"Good. Here's the money to stay at a hotel for the next week. Don't spend it on anything else. I'll call you when everything is ready."  
"Very well."  
-----  
A phone rang. Echo picked it up.  
  
"Hello?"  
  
"This situation…I find it very nostalgic."  
  
"Ocelot…nice to hear from you."  
  
"Is he in?"  
  
"Who?"  
  
"Solid Snake"  
  
"Didn't you hear…Solid Snake is dead."  
  
Both of the men laughed as Echo hung up the phone and drifted back into the darkness… 


	11. Requiem II

Metal Gear Solid III: Codename: Foxhound

Chapter IX: Requiem Pt. 2

"David...call him."

He heard the click of the phone and exited the phone booth on cue. The building was just up ahead, heavy rain clouding his vision. A metal briefcase hung loosely from one of his hands. The other reached into the jacket and took out a cell phone, his numb fingers dialing a number he had been given earlier.

"Snake?"

He didn't answer.

"Who is this"  
"I'm coming"  
"What"  
"I'm coming for you."

He hung up and broke into a run. The door splintered easily on contact and he broke into a run on the stairs. A door three floors above him opened and closed rapidly, the ragged breathing of the target echoing down. The briefcase snapped open mid-run and he threw it against the wall, both hand gripping silenced submachine guns. For a second the stairs were sparked with bullets and then he broke into a run again. The target's shadow was nearing the top as David aimed and pulled off a single burst. The target stumbled, lost balance and began to fall, not-so-nimble hands missing the railing as his face hit it, spectacles falling into the darkness of the floors below.

There was no longer a need to run. David took his time, the fast-fading breath closing in as he rose floor by floor. He knelt next to the target, bloody sweater and terrified eyes staring back. Rising again, he pointed the gun, connecting with the sweating skin of the target's forehead. The convulsions of the target's body and his screams soon faded out. Another shot. This one somehow echoed louder than the last and the body fell, limp and dead.

Heading a few floors down, he picked up the briefcase and shot out the locks and opened the door with considerable ease. Placing the bombs on opposing sides of the hallway, he surveyed the technology-heavy room, computers covering corners of rooms and filing cabinets all around. In a few minutes it would all be gone. Heading into one of the rooms, a bed greeted him. There was a table next to the bed and bandanna, caked with dry blood. Something urged him on, and so he picked it up and tied it around his forehead. It was time now.

He exited, pressed a few keys on his cellphone and the building collapsed, floor by floor leveled and the fire warmed him. Here once stood Solid Snake. 


	12. Eleanor Rigby

Chapter 12: Eleanor Rigby

"I look at all the lonely people."

-The Beatles

It's been years. No. Days.

A month? It's not unlikely.

There's a problem though. There's blood everywhere. Unclean. Unhealthy. Strange. Haven't seen this before. He's walking. Haven't seen him do this before. The great metal beast raises its beak to the sky and roars defiantly. Its hind legs dig deep into the steel underground. The Adam's apple of a laser melts metal. The shoulder missiles shake menacingly with each vibration. It's almost suggestive in its broad muscular nature. Sexual. The blood's black puddles shine. It spits it. I wish it were more sterile.

I watched it grow. Stunned me once. With its growth. My voice…it sounds strange to me. I haven't heard it before…like, I haven't heard it before. Have I? Who? Am? Or…who was he? I knew that man. Before I killed him. I knew him. Like…a brother.

I am a murderer. I have killed hundreds. And I loved it. I was a murderer. Now I am redeemed. Redeemed before this machine. He calls it the R-E-X. Strange name. A foreign name, a powerful name, for all I know. I wouldn't know though. Not my job. My job is prayer. I pray. I kneel. Sometimes I sin and suffer. But R-E-X always forgives. Its bright screens and screams tell me so. And then I'm happy. He says we'll free the "free world" soon, and then chuckles. I don't care much for it. I can't remember ever being there. So soon. It seems, like eternity.

Frank, what have I done?


	13. Pathos

Chapter 13: Pathos

Let's begin anew.

Let's build a new world.

Finally, after all these years, we will rise from the depths of the underground, faithful avengers of our Fathers. We will crush the opposition; eradicate the rare vigilante that dares to believe himself worthy of his own cause. There is no cause but our cause, no war but our war, and we intend to make it so. We stand here no longer as part of humankind but a new race, a new drop in the gene that has been crippled by its current benefactors. We are Genome.

GENOME!

We are soldiers.

We are martyrs to a new cause.

Let us redefine martyrdom.

So, lead your beasts into battle and let their roar be heard to the heavens and above. Bask in the deserved glory that has been robbed from us too many times.

Let us pray. To my father.

TO BIG BOSS! TO HIS SONS! TO JUSTICE!

"Go", said David.


	14. Immaculate

Metal Gear Solid III: Codename Foxhound

Part I ended with Pathos. Thus begins Part II: Immaculate.

The boat floated weightlessly on the cold waters of the New York harbor. Frank struck a manage on the surface and lit a cigar. He puffed in, engulfing the smoke, reveling in it. The waters slowly overturned against the boat's iron hide. Frank listened for the rhythm. Chewing on the soggy cigar, he kicked his feet up, unbuckled his sidearm and turned his up to the sky. Jimmy descended from the top deck, his boots clanking on the old metal. He sat down by Frank, arched his back, breathed out and spoke: "Too fuckin' cold."

"That's right," Frank retorted, still stargazing. He breathed out clouds of smoke then sat up and cleared them out with one sweep of his hand. He coughed, got up and went across to the starboard side. Frank spat. Jimmy watched the waves. The spittle landed on the water and dissolving, disappeared.

Frank looked down into the water. The boat exploded.

Out of the depths, the first of two dozen Rays arched its back, titled its head back to the stars and roared. The water spilled off it in waves, lights around the harbor went on, people screamed, and David laughed.


End file.
